BUDDIPOLE IN THE FIELD

1 The Buddipole Antenna System
This book is about the Buddipole
antenna system from Buddipole, Inc.
What is a Buddipole? A Buddipole is an
antenna for VHF and HF
communications constructed from
small, lightweight parts for portable
and temporary use. (Note that many
people use one as their permanent
antenna.) There is no “one
Buddipole” antenna; the Buddipole is a
system that can be assembled in any
number of ways to fit a particular
purpose. This book will describe
Chris Drummond, W6HFP
Buddipole President
with a Buddipole
how to select the best Buddipole configuration for a variety of situations
including working from a beach, hilltop, balcony, or field.
The Buddipole antenna system can be used to construct antennas covering
7 MHz – 148 MHz in horizontal dipole, vertical dipole, vertical
monopole, or other configurations. Lower bands are possible with
additional components. Where full-sized antennas can be configured the
Buddipole provides an antenna equal in performance to permanent
antenna alternatives. Shortened antennas can be constructed using
loading coils, and these perform surprisingly well when deployed properly.
There are many “standard” antenna configurations, but it can also be fun
and effective to create your own designs.
In this regard, the Buddipole is very much like the childrens’ toy erector set.
The erector set was invented by A. C. Gilbert in 1911 and manufactured
by the A. C. Gilbert Company in New Haven, Connecticut until the late
1960’s. (The Gabriel company of Lancaster, Pennsylvania bought the
name and continued making the set into the 1980’s.) The erector set
included metal pieces in a wide variety of shapes and sizes, wheels, axles,
pulleys, twine, motors, cogs, and all manner of mechanical contraptions.
A big bag of nuts and bolts allowed children (of all ages) to build cranes,
airplanes, trucks, towers, ships, and many other objects. The very best—
and most fun—things to build were those not found in the scant
assembly instructions and guides that came with the set; the best stuff
were those things made with just the user’s imagination. The genius of
the erector set was that anything was possible. The Buddipole antenna
system is very much the same! There are so many possible combinations
and configurations for the Buddipole that no one book could cover them
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